


Sally's

by percysbitch



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bakery, Alternate Universe - College/University
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-21 21:09:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9566423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/percysbitch/pseuds/percysbitch
Summary: Annabeth hadn't intended to end up in a tiny bakery in Manhattan when she left campus that day.Thank god she did.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a few weeks ago just as a one shot and for fun. I've received a couple of comments on tumblr saying I should write more, so please let me know what you think! Dem x

_Great._ Annabeth thought as she finished climbing the subway stairs. _Just great._ In the ten minutes that she had been on the train, the rain had started to fall in droves, the roaring cars and towering buildings surrounding her becoming increasingly darker and greyer as damp hair fell in her face and stuck in the collar of her coat. 

Annabeth rued the decision she had made that morning to bring her mythology books to campus for light reading, as she had just been handed a pretty hefty assignment and had no more space in her bag to safely stash the papers as she elbowed and sidestepped her way through the crowded city.

She decided that fighting her way through the appalling Manhattan weather in rush hour just wasn't worth it. She gave up on going home and instead cast her eyes hungrily over the warm, golden lights of the nearest shop windows, searching for the cosiest - and cheapest - restaurant, cafe, whatever. Annabeth passed several boutiques, useless to her now, and was about to give up on her mission when she noticed a bakery, nestled between two much larger stores, right on the corner.  
It had blue and white striped awning, and just the amber glow that Annabeth had been searching for. And _the smell._ It was enough to make her wonder once she had stepped inside if she would ever leave again. 

As she got closer, Annabeth could see that the shopfront was a little rundown, but it seemed to make the place even more endearing and cosy. The white painted front was beginning to peel, and the window pane had cracked in the corner. Just outside was a slightly scrawny looking boy in a pastel blue apron. He was attempting to clean the blackboard just outside the door. Annabeth imagined that not long before she had arrived it had been covered in beautiful swirly pastel writing, but the rain had reduced it to a milky puddle. The boy was shivering violently, his curly hair plastered flat against his head, but he still raised his head and flashed a weary smile at Annabeth as she hurried through the door.

A brass bell tinkled somewhere above her head, and immediately a sense of calm washed over Annabeth. She let out a deep sigh, standing there in the doorway, getting her bearings, before surveying the scene around her. To her left was a display case full of some of the most beautiful pastries Annabeth had ever seen - architectural feats where the foundations were sponge and the embellishments were icing.  
A blackboard hung on the wall behind it, and Annabeth admired the neatness of the pale blue handwriting on it. Next to the counter was the cash register, also pastel blue - Annabeth was starting to sense a theme. Murmured voices and the hum of appliances hard at work drifted towards her through the closed door behind the counter. On her right, cream tables and chairs were carefully laid out. A young couple sat at the back of the bakery, speaking in soft tones, holding hands over the table, another girl sat in the middle table, staring intently at the screen of her laptop. In one hand she held a half eaten cupcake piled high with frosting, the other was tugging on her headphone string, a pen held loosely in between her fingers. The only sounds were soft voices, the occasional clicking of computer keys, and the crooning duet that floated towards her from the speakers in the corners of the room.

Annabeth opted for the table right next to the window so she could keep an eye on the weather, and set her bag and papers down clumsily, making more noise than she would have liked. She went straight to the counter; the intricacy of the pastries and the irresistible smell of baking bread and sweet, potentially chocolatey goods made Annabeth wonder if she would ever be able to pick something. She hastily brushed a raindrop from the tip of her nose, and was just peeling wayward strands of hair from her face and neck when the kitchen door creaked open, and an employee stepped out to stand behind the counter. Annabeth didn't acknowledge them just yet, still engrossed in her indecision, but she could feel the stranger's eyes looking her up and down.

"You look—" a young male began.

_Here we go._ Annabeth thought.

"Wet? Like a Mess?" She cut him off, finishing his sentence for him.

It was then that she raised her eyes from the glass to the boy's face. He stood about a head taller than her, his angular jaw hanging slightly open in surprise, expressive eyebrows furrowed over dark, glittering eyes, the same colour as a stormy sea. Annabeth's raised eyebrow and stony expression slipped off her face as she realised exactly how cute the boy she had just snapped at was. She bit her lip, her hand curling around her neck sheepishly. The boy ran a hand through his already extremely tousled black hair, and he gave her a lopsided smile, a silent indication that he didn't take her retort personally.

"Welcome to Sally's. You look," he began again, "like you need a cookie." He grinned at Annabeth and she responded in kind.

"That sounds good, but I was actually thinking I might try one of th—"

"Trust me." He cut her off, his hand raised and sombre expression painted on his effortlessly handsome face.  
"You need a cookie. They just came out of the oven, and they're best when they're still warm and the chips are still melting." As he spoke, his eyes glazed over, his tone taking on a certain kind of reverence. The thought of hot, buttery biscuit and chocolate melting in her mouth made Annabeth cave. She shrugged and smiled.

"You're the expert. I'll have a cookie."

He cracked a crooked grin that made Annabeth's heart twinge slightly.

"You won't regret this!" He cried cheerfully as he disappeared into the kitchen.

As soon as he had vanished behind the door, Annabeth's shoulders sagged and she pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes. Could that have gone any worse? God, Piper was going to really love this one. In the unfortunate chronicles of Annabeth's dating life, she could be pretty sure she had never made quite such a bad impression before. She looked terrible too — she couldn't imagine that sexy bakery boy thought much of the drowned rat look that she was sporting this evening, either.

The door groaned on it's hinges once more, and the boy returned with a tray of freshly baked cookies. As he leant over to slide the tray into the display case, Annabeth caught a glimpse of his name tag.

Percy.

Interesting name.

Percy and Annabeth. Annabeth and Percy. She quite liked the sound of that.

Hey, are you going to the party tonight? Where? You know, Percy and Annabeth's-

_Oh my god, Annabeth. Stop. Stop it. Now._

Surprisingly, Percy's name wasn't the most interesting thing in front of her.

She stared at Percy blankly as he handed her a plate with a cookie on it.

Annabeth blinked.

"It's blue."

Percy bit his lip to smother a smile, and raised his eyebrows.

"Uh, yeah. You may not have noticed, but," He gestured around the bakery. "it's kind of our thing."

"Yeah, no, I got that." Annabeth's steely eyes flashed playfully as she took the plate from him and handed him the money. "But even the food?"

"It makes it taste better."

"Actually, it doesn't. It's only really red and black food colourings that affect taste and even then I wouldn't say they make it taste _better_."

Percy chuckled in disbelief, and Annabeth tried not to notice the way that the sound made her stomach tie itself in knots.

"You can keep your fancy facts, Wise Girl. Just enjoy your cookie. And when you're done, you'll see that I'm right."

If anyone else had given her a nickname like that, Annabeth would probably have at least made a scene - shouted, maybe given them a swift punch to the arm. But coming from Percy, with his stupid messy hair and his dumb crooked grin, for a reason which definitely wasn't associated with his extreme attractiveness, Annabeth let it slide. 

In fact, she kind of liked it.

Annabeth huffed indignantly, and spun around as confidently as she could, sitting in the seat facing away from Percy so he couldn't see her expression. It was a good thing he couldn't, because he would have known immediately that he was, in fact, right.

That single cookie was undeniably the best thing she had ever tasted. Better than all the barbecues and toasted marshmallows and fresh fruit she had eaten as a kid at camp. Annabeth stared out of the window for a while, wondering exactly how she had ended up making a fool out herself in front of a cute guy who worked in a random bakery that sold blue cookies, of all things. It was whilst she was considering these things that she noticed the roads were clearer and the rain was thinning.

Hauling her bag onto her shoulder, Annabeth turned to leave the bakery, her cheeks reddening at the prospect of having to admit to Percy that he had been right. The aforementioned reddening, of course, had absolutely nothing to do with the way that percy was sitting on the counter, with his toned arms stretched out behind him, gently swinging his feet in the air.

"Was I right?" Percy jumped off the counter, smirking.

Annabeth sighed, and handed him her plate. "As much as I hate to admit it...yeah. You were."

Percy beamed for what Annabeth thought might have been the one hundredth time since she'd met him. Was this guy ever unhappy?

"Well..." Annabeth gripped the strap of her messenger bag tightly. She was biding her time. For some reason, she really, really didn't want to leave. "I'd better be going. Assignments to do and...stuff. Thanks for, uh, opening my eyes."

Percy leant against the doorframe, looking down at her. Annabeth noted that he had a smattering of freckles across his nose, and the knots in her stomach returned suddenly.

"You're more than welcome." Just then, he produced a paper bag from behind his back. "One for the road. On us." Annabeth smiled, keeping her eyes fixed firmly on the bag.

"Thank you." She pulled the door open and was halfway through it when she glanced back through the entrance, towards Percy. She tucked a stray curl behind her ear.

"Bye."

"See you round."

—

The bell's chime signified that 'Wise Girl' had finally left. It was then that Grover, Percy's closest friend and fellow Sally's Bakery employee, popped his head around the kitchen door, his hair finally dry.

"Oh, no." He said, letting the door thud shut behind him. Percy was gazing out of the window, a dopey grin plastered on his face.

"'Wise Girl', Perce? Really?"

"Mhm."

"What's her actual name?"

"No idea."

"Great. That's great, Percy." Grover shut his eyes, rubbed his temples, and called for Sally.

Sally appeared, dark brown hair tied back, the same sprinkling of freckles as her son, untying her apron.

"What's going on? Grover?"

"You've got your hands full, Sally." Grover nodded towards his lovestruck friend. "He's a goner."

—

Piper's thumb was hovering over the call button, and she was just about to give in and press it when she heard the unmistakable scratching sound of Annabeth twisting her keys in the stiff lock of their front door.  
It took Piper a fair amount of time to untangle herself from her blankets, and by the time she reached the kitchen, Annabeth was already there. And Piper was not prepared for what she saw.

Her best friend, her blonde curly hair sticking out in directions that were impressive even for Annabeth, looking exhausted and damp, staring transfixed at a bright blue cookie.

"Alright." said Piper seriously, pulling out the chair opposite her friend, dragging Annabeth out of wherever the hell her head was.

" _Spill._ "


End file.
